The Septimus Notes

Wednesday, January 26, 2005

No one raises his hand anymore.

In class.

Remember the days when the teacher would call out a question and the hands would all shoot up, quivering in the hope of being called on? That was way back in the beginning... Kindergarten, 1st Grade? Time passed, fewer and fewer hands shot up. The hands that continued to shoot up are the hands that join mine at Columbia.

Only, our hands barely make it above ear-level. Is it that we sense we are surrounded by people with equally good responses or comments? Have we been spoon fed humility so much to the point that even when a question is directed to us we aren't quite sure we are to answer it?

On the rare chance that a hand breaks through the glass ceiling and makes it as far as the head, it's only to rest on the head in an awkward semi-erect fashion. Almost to say to the professor, "My hand may be raised, but only if you think it's raised because you want to call me on me to answer your question. Otherwise it's not raised and this is just where I like to rest my hand."

At this rate, will we even bother to speak in class in grad school or just stare blankly, inconspicuously at the white board (grad students don't use chalk)?

promulgated by SWS2.1 at 22:02.
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